


Everyday

by autumntea



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Fluff, M/M, Multi, series of connected one-shots
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-06-09
Updated: 2013-10-16
Packaged: 2017-12-14 11:45:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 6,949
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/836523
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/autumntea/pseuds/autumntea
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Everyday can be a challenge with your rival turned best-friend turned boyfriend, but Portgas D. Ace and Monkey D. Luffy seem to be doing a good job so far.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Cat People

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ace and Luffy decide to get a cat. (Ace is 23, Luffy is 20.)

After a lot of convincing and whining on Luffy's part, Ace finally caved in to Luffy's desire to get an animal.

While Ace wasn't all that fond of animals, having been chased several times in the past by dogs, cats, and that one deranged rabbit, Luffy was. And if there was anything Ace like doing it was making Luffy happy.

"Ace, Ace you wanna know what we should get? We should get a goat! Goats are really cool!"

The 23 year old sighed. "We can't get a goat Luffy. I told you, the landlord will only let us get a cat."

"Oh." Luffy deflated, before bouncing back up. "Cats are really cool too!"

"When they aren't chasing you or clawing your face off." Mumbled Ace, low enough so his boyfriend couldn't hear. Which was a failure, seeing as the younger man laughed loudly and grabbed Ace's hand, lacing their fingers together.

"Don't worry; we aren't getting a stray, so it probably won't attack you."

"Oh please, Lu, cats in general don't like me. Remember Thatch's old cat?"

"Thatch said that it was because you tried to set Tinkerbell on fire."

"Thatch is a dirty liar."

"Sure he is." He actually was a liar, but Luffy knew Ace like the back of his hand.

"I never once set Thatch's cat on fire."

"I'm sure you tried, though."

"...I'm not having this conversation. We're here, anyways."

Luffy cheered as the pet shop where he apparently 'knew a guy' came into view. He pulled Ace forward, excitement radiating from him.

The younger man pushed the door of the pet shop, the sounds of animals making noise and a calm, lazy voice welcoming them.

"Hey, Strawhat."

"Hi, Killer!" chirped Luffy. "Is Kid in?"

The man who definitely didn't look like he'd be working in a pet shop, what with his long, unruly blond hair and face that was covered with a mask shook his head. "Nah, he said that he had to face one of his 'rivals' today. I think he might be with Law or the Bonney-babe, but he gets rivals like dead bodies get flies, so you never know. This the boyfriend?"

"Mmmh! This is Ace! We're getting a cat!"

Killer fingered a magazine on the counter. "Kid said you'd be stopping by. You know where they are."

"Yeah! C'mon Ace, kitties!" Luffy nearly squealed, basically running in the direction of the 'kitties', leaving Killer and Ace, who was shaking his head over how precious his idiot was.

Following Luffy, Ace found him with nose pressed against glass, looking at the cats on the other side.

The 20 year old was looking at one cat in particular, who had come up to the glass to greet him.

The cat was blonde and fluffy looking and even Ace could admit that it was pretty cute. Luffy looked up once Ace was standing next to him, the look in his eyes telling Ace that he knew what cat he wanted.

"He's pretty cute," Ace said offhandedly, crouching down beside Luffy, causing the cat's attention to shift to him. He took the fact that the cat didn't attack the glass near his face as a very good sign. "You think of a name?"

Luffy laughed and said, "I know!" he paused, the grin on his face falling a bit. "I was thinking about 'Sabo'."

Ace's eyes widened just a bit, before he sent Luffy a warm, shaky smile. He wrapped an arm around Luffy's torso to pull him in close and then kissed the top of Luffy's head. "That's a great name." he muttered against black strands.

Luffy hugged his boyfriend back, looking up so he could smile brightly at him. "I know!"

"Hey, Killer! We found a cat!"


	2. Went A Little Like This

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ace and Luffy have their first kiss. (Ace is 19, while Luffy is 16.)

Rolling over on his bed, Monkey D. Luffy moaned, his skin sticky from sweat.

The 16 year old liked warm weather; he really did, but sometimes it could be a little too much.

He didn't even have an air conditioner in his room; Ace had it, which totally wasn't fair, considering that Ace was weird, he was hardly here anymore, and he could deal with nights like these a lot better than Luffy could.

Rolling off of the bed, Luffy got to his feet and trudged to the room across from his. He knew Ace wouldn't mind, after all, today was the first time they had seen one another since Ace had left for college. He opened the door without knocking and was met with a cold blast of air. He didn't bother to contain his content sigh.

"What are you doing?" a familiar, sleepy voice murmured.

"It's too hot in my room," Luffy shut the door behind him and walked to the foot Ace's bed. The freckled college student was peering down at him, "move over."

"It's too hot to share a bed." Grumbled Ace, but he made room anyways.

Crawling in next to his best friend and making himself comfortable, Luffy responded with, "You have the air conditioner."

"S'not my fault you got yours taken away from you…" Ace and Luffy were face-to-face, Ace's arm resting on the pillow above the younger's head.

Luffy laughed his odd laugh and tucked his hands under his pillow, not breaking eye contact. "Missed you."

Luffy could see Ace's wide grin even in the dark. "Missed you too, idiot."

The two fell silent, the sound of the air conditioner being the only source of sound in the room. Feeling himself grow sleepy, Luffy willed himself to stay awake and shifted his body so he was hovering above Ace.

It was now or never and never was an option Luffy couldn't accept.

"Lu?" Ace cracked an eye open when he felt the movement next to him. Before he could do anything, soft, plump lips that he had had many dreams about in the past were on his. It was only for a second, but for Ace it felt like an eternity; an eternity he'd prefer never ending.

When Luffy moved away, a soft expression that Ace had never seen on him was on his face. His lips were curved up in the brightest, most sincere smile Ace had ever seen; his eyes were barely open and crinkled at edges.

Ace, however, was no longer hazy with sleep, his eyes wide, mouth gapping like a fish, and his cheeks a shade of red Luffy had never seen before.

Chuckling sleepily, Luffy placed his head back on the pillow, enjoying the cold air on his skin, and mumbled out, "You're cute," before falling asleep, a single thought running in his head:

It was going to be a fun summer.


	3. Want

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While Ace is away, Luffy has a dream and things get... heated. (Luffy is 16, Ace is 19. Set before last chapter.)

_Their touches are quick and their kisses are fleeting._

_Hands fumble in the dark room, pulling off articles of clothing or brushing against flushed skin._

_Breathes come out in pants as lips hungrily kiss his lips and neck. His fingers travel from a muscled torso up to dark curls._

_A low moan escapes him as both lips and hands travel lower and lower and Luffy never wants it to stop._

Luffy wakes up with a start, his mouth dry and a rather uncomfortable strain in his shorts. He looks up at the ceiling in an attempt to calm himself, but it's difficult.

After all, it wasn't every day you had a wet dream about your best-friend. Well, except when it kind of _was_.

He wanted more than just a dream. He wanted Ace to touch him all over with warm, familiar hands, he wanted his lips pressed roughly against his; Luffy wanted those lips everywhere, actually. His want burned like an ache inside of him.

Luffy brings his hand to his boxers and dips it underneath, grasping around his erection, slowly pumping up and down the sensitive flesh.

He thinks of Ace as he jerks himself off. He imagines Ace on top of him, making Luffy his. He imagines tasting Ace and Ace tasting him.

Luffy quickens the speed of his hand, small, quiet moans leaving his lips. He imagines Ace fucking him, hard and rough, and the thought brings Luffy over the edge.

Eyes close as Luffy lets the euphoria wash over him, toes curling and Ace's name escaping his lips.

It's amazing, but he thinks that it'll be even better with Ace.

Luffy rests his arm over his eyes. He had never been patient, especially with something he wanted.

But this time, it didn't really seem like he had a choice in the matter, seeing as Ace was at college.

He rolls out of bed so he could clean himself up, feet quiet so he didn't wake Shanks or Makino up.

There was only two weeks until Ace came back and if he lasted this long, he'd had to make himself last for a little while longer.

Blue eyes shine with determination, because no matter how long he had to wait, Luffy would always get what he wanted.


	4. Never Be The Same

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A funeral is held for Ace's mother.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have no clue how this chapter came to be after that last one... But here you go.

Makino's grip on his hand tightens ever so slightly as Ace walks forward; his legs shaky.

Luffy's eyes watch the older boy, sometimes flicking to Sabo, who's sitting next to him, the back of their hands touching, or Makino, whose face is red and puffy, or Shanks' who is on Makino's other side; his lips drawn in a frown and his eyes serious. Luffy's own grandfather is sitting in the row behind them, but Luffy can't see his face.

The crowd they are a part of isn't big; just a few people that Ace's mama had been close too.

The man who had greeted Shanks when they arrived in is sitting in the row ahead of them, his hand covering his eyes. Shanks had called him Rayleigh.

Everyone's eyes seem to be on Ace when he reaches his mother; Luffy wants them to stop because he knows that Ace doesn't like it when people look at him when he's upset.

Ace's mama is in that weird box thing and Luffy doesn't really understand, except he does. He knows that they'll never see Ace's mama again, just like how Luffy won't see his mama anymore. He knows that that things won't be the same, but he doesn't understand why. The seven year old reaches for Sabo's hand, who grabs and squeezes back, rubbing the back of Luffy's hand with his thumb like he always did.

When Ace walks back to them, his looks more upset than Luffy had ever seen him; Luffy thinks he might cry, but he's not sure, because he's never seen Ace cry.

Sabo releases Luffy's hand and moves over so Ace can have room to sit. Shanks had dropped Makino's hand so he could pat Ace on the shoulder when he gets to their aisle. Ace sits in between Luffy and Sabo. Luffy grabs Ace's hand almost automatically; the older boy's fingers barely twitching in response, but that's more than okay for Luffy.

When the service ends, Ace leaves Luffy's grandfather and the man called Rayleigh.

000 

"At least they're finally together again." Shanks says later that night when Luffy's supposed to be sleeping.

Luffy watches as Makino sits down across from Shanks with a watery sounding laugh that Luffy doesn't like, because Makino isn't supposed to sound like that. "They're happy now."

Shanks takes a large drink of whatever's in his cup. "Remember how Roger always used to drop everything whenever he saw her?"

Makino eyes the table and lets out another laugh. "I remember he fell flat on his face once; Rouge thought he was ridiculous."

"Still went with him anyways." His adoptive father is smiling, but it's not the same one he usually wears. It's the gentle one that he gives Luffy whenever the boy has a nightmare and crawls into bed with him.

"They… They were great for one another." Makino says, before turning her head to look at the wall that Luffy is standing behind. "Luffy, I know you're there," Shanks' amusement is audible. "Come on out, baby."

The seven year old peaks from behind the wall, only to be greeted with a warm smile from his adoptive mother. She motions him forward with her hand and he comes forth.

"Couldn't sleep?" Shanks asks, smiling a playful smile that's a little closer to his regular one. Luffy nods his head in agreement and Makino puts a hand in between his shoulder blades to push him closer to her so she can lift him up onto her lap.

"I was just about to go to bed, do you want to sleep with us tonight Luffy?"

Luffy says that he'd like that and Makino hums, a light sound that fills the air, moving to stand up and carrying Luffy with ease and he wraps his tiny arms around the woman's neck.

"I'll be up in a bit," Shanks starts, standing up to place a kiss on Makino's cheek and to ruffle Luffy's hair. "Get some sleep, it's been a long day and you two look like you need it."

"You need it more than I do, Shanks." Makino sounds kind of worried and Luffy looks up at Shanks with wide eyes. The red-headed man smiles easily, but he really does look tired. "I'm okay Makino, I'll head up soon. I just... have to do some things."

The dark-haired woman nods having understood something that Luffy hadn't. She leans over to kiss him on the lips and Luffy looks away, getting a laugh from Shanks.

"Go to bed little anchor, we're gonna visit Ace tomorrow."

Luffy nods, because that's all what he really wanted to do since they went their separate ways earlier that day, and says goodnight to his adoptive father, feeling sleepier by now. Makino brings the two of them upstairs and tucks them in, hugging Luffy close and placing a kiss on his forehead, mumbling "Goodnight baby," in the quiet of the room.

He falls asleep in his adoptive mother's arms, thinking that he wants to be there for Ace and Sabo like Makino and Shanks are for one another.


	5. Sunday Morning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ace and Luffy spend a morning together, but not for long. (Ace is 24, Luffy is 21)

Ace lays in bed, the soothing sound of pouring rain threatening to lull him back to sleep when Luffy walks out of the bathroom, clad only in a towel.

"Morning," mumbles Ace directing Luffy's attention on him.

Luffy walks over and leans close to Ace, pressing his lips against Ace's softly, giggling when they part. "Morning sleepy head."

Water drips from Luffy onto Ace. The freckled man smiles up at Luffy before connecting their lips in a longer kiss, placing one hand on the back of the younger man's neck, where wet hair curls, and the other on the small on his back, pushing him closer to him, not at all mindful of the towel wrapped around the others waist.

Luffy straddles Ace's hips and wraps his arms around the muscular man's neck. When Ace's tongue prods at his lips, Luffy is more than willing to open his lips wide enough for Ace to enter.

Quiet giggles fill the air as Ace's tongue maps the roof of his mouth and his hand trails from the older man's neck and down his chest, rubbing his hands up and down his abs, leaving a fiery trail.

Ace's hand on the small of Luffy's back wanders, too. Fingers run up the curve of Luffy's spine, causing a small shiver to pass through the 21 year old's body, before gripping at hips and flipping their positions, so Ace is now on top of Luffy.

"Nooo!" Luffy giggles and squirms as Ace's fingers tickle his bare abdomen, his mouth sucking and blowing against the sensitive area beneath his ear. "N-not fair!"

Really, Ace was such a cheater for using his ticklish sports against him.

Luffy's already rosy cheeks darken when Ace moves his mouth to nibble on his ear, his laughter making it hard to breath.

"A-Ace!" he whines in between laughs, "St-stop."

Ace had other plans in mind, loving his boyfriends laughter, but the universe seems to be on Luffy's side.

Groaning, Ace reaches for the phone, sitting up across Luffy's lap.

"Hello?" Luffy squirms underneath Ace, trying to get his breath back but otherwise watches his boyfriend talk. "Seriously? Shit, I'll be there in half an hour."

Ace grimaces at Luffy when he hangs up the phone, receiving a pout in return.

"I gotta go, Lu."

"But it's your day off," Luffy whines, sitting up and wrapping his arms around Ace's neck, almost wishing that Ace would continue to tickle him if it meant he didn't have to leave.

"I know, Lu, but there's an emergency and they need me. I'll be back soon." Ace rubs circles in between Luffy's shoulder blades.

Luffy hums, pout still on his face. "Come back soon, okay? I love you."

"Yeah, as soon I can," Ace kisses Luffy softly, caressing soft cheeks with the pads of his thumbs. "I love you, too."

Rolling off the bed, Ace and Luffy both get dressed, before the former pulls the latter close again.

"Let's go get something to eat when I come back, yeah?"

"Yeah!" Luffy says with a grin, already excited.

When Ace leaves their room, Sabo enters and meows loudly at Luffy, who grins and picks the cat up.

"Looks it's just me and you for now, Sabo."

The cat meows in response.


	6. Relax, Take It Easy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ace has a bad day at work. Luckily enough, however, he has the best boyfriend.

Ace rolls his shoulders, face set in a scowl as climbs up the stairs leading to his apartment.

Work had been hell today. Usually Ace enjoyed his job, but sometimes it could be unbelievably stressful. At the moment he needed a cigarette or six, but as if the universe was out to spite him, the freckled man had left both his cigarettes and wallet at home.

He idly wonders if Luffy's home as he walks down the hallway. Ace isn't quite sure he has enough patience to deal with Luffy, but he knows that he doesn't want to take out any of his stress on his boyfriend.

His hands dip into his pockets and lo and behold, his keys aren't in his pockets. Ace can vaguely remember leaving them on his desk at work and he feels like screaming.

Today sucked.

Trudging down the hallway, trying to remember where they kept the spare key, Ace begins to hear loud music blasting from the direction of their apartment and he knows Luffy's home.

Ace doesn't bother knocking on the door, knowing that Luffy couldn't lock a door to save his life. Letting himself in, the loud bass already giving him a headache.

Luffy's in the front room, swaying his hips to the music, Sabo is in his arms, looking resigned. The younger man turns around as he dances and spots Ace, his face instantly lighting up.

"Ace!" Luffy calls out, dropping Sabo and walking closer before pausing. "Are you okay?"

The newly twenty-five year old sighs, "Work sucked today."

Luffy walks over to Ace and grabs him by the hands, giving him a peck on the lips. "Good thing you aren't working anymore, ne?" He then stands on his tiptoes and gives Ace a quick peck on the lips, hands resting on Ace's shoulder blades. The younger man pauses for a second before rubbing his hands up and down Ace's back and he would be lying if he said it didn't feel good.

"You're so tense… " Luffy states and leans back so he can meet Ace's eyes, hands still moving. "Hmmm… You want a massage?"

Ace blinks and arches a brow at the question. A massage would be absolutely perfect right about now. But last he checked, Luffy didn't know how to give massages and, knowing his boyfriend, it might turn out more painful than pleasurable.

He goes over the options in his head, but he knows the answer already.

"Okay," Ace starts and Luffy's eyes light up. "But… Do you even know how to give massages?"

Luffy nods his head excitably. "Yeah, I do! Come on!"

Ace lets the younger drag him across the front room to turn off the music, to their room where the younger forces him to sit down on their bed. Luffy takes it upon himself to unbutton Ace's dress shirt, even pulling it off his shoulders for him.

The younger man lets Ace take off the rest of the shirt and throws it to the side while Luffy climbs on the bed behind him and starts to massage his shoulders, surprisingly gentle.

Ace groans as all of the knots in his shoulders disperse with Luffy's actions.

So he really could give massages, who knew.

Slowly, Luffy's magic fingers worked their way down his back.

"Lay down on your tummy, yeah?"

Ace does as he's told, grabbing a pillow to lay his head on, and is aware of Luffy placing his legs on either side of the twenty-five year old before his hands are back on Ace's back.

The perfect amount of pressure is being pressed into his back and surely enough, Ace can feel all of his worries vanish for the time being as he relaxes for the first time all day.

Luffy drags the tips on his fingers across Ace's muscular back, making him twitch at the ticklish feeling, before leaning down closer to Ace.

"Do you feel any better now?"

Ace grins at his boyfriend. "Much. Thanks Lu."

"Shishishishi, no problem Ace!" Luffy kisses him on the forehead before rolling over and lying next to him. Ace turns so he and Luffy are faced the same way. Luffy wraps his arms around Ace's neck and his face turns sly. "You know, there are other ways to get rid of stress."

God, did Ace love his boyfriend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhh, this chapter is kinda rushed but w/e. I'm dealing with some stuff and I'm half-asleep atm. 
> 
> I have some questions if you guys want to answer them: What would you guys like to see for this series? Smut - yes or no?


	7. Home Remedies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luffy gets sick so it's up to Ace to take care of him.

Luffy always got sick really easily for reasons he wasn't too sure of. Makino said that there was a lot to it, but that basically he was really weak to invisible monsters so he got sick really often.

His eyes had grown wide and he felt kind of scared. He didn't want to be attacked by monsters! Luffy told Makino this and that he wasn't going to let the monsters hurt him anymore.

When he said that, Makino smiled at him fondly, but also kind of sad before it disappeared when Shanks came into the room with ice cream for the three of them.

++ 

Shivering, Luffy burrows into the blankets further, coughing roughly.

He had woken up feeling really, really bad and he couldn't tell Makino and Shanks about it, because they were away for the weekend, but he was staying with Ace and his mom so at least he had someone to see.

Once he went to her, Rouge had put a cold hand that felt really, really good against his head.

She made a concerned sound and said "Sweetheart, you're burning up," before she scooped him up quickly into her arms and next thing he knew, Luffy was back in the guest room.

Rouge placed him back on the bed; pulling the covers over him with one hand and running the other through his hair soothingly.

She tells him to rest and that she'll be back in a few minutes.

Luffy groans and holds the blankets closer to him.

"Luffy?" the voice sounds faraway, but still familiar. Luffy looks up and Ace is standing at the corner of the bed, causing Luffy to jump a little because _when did he get there_? "Are you okay?"

"No," Luffy whimpers and Ace's eyebrows furrow.

"I...I'll go get mom."

"She knows." He says quietly, not wanting to be alone.

"Oh..." Ace looks lost for words. "Are you…sick?"

"Mmm. Monsters… Want em to go away…"

The boy who had become one of his best friends quickly in the past year arches an eyebrow. "Okay… So, you have to beat them up?

Luffy laughs a little because someone finally agrees with him, but he ends up coughing a lot because of it and it hurts.

Ace looks like he doesn't know what to do, but he helps Luffy sit up and the younger boy coughs until his throat hurts much more than before.

He slowly lays back down and yawns, wanting to sleep. Ace sees this, but he doesn't leave.

Instead, the ten year old looks behind him and reaches for one of Luffy's hands, his cheeks flushing slightly. Luffy's fingers twitch slightly as Ace holds his hand and rubs small circles into the back of his hand.

As he falls asleep, Luffy can't help but think that; with Ace with him, he can't help but feel a little better already.

++ 

Ace makes sure that he's extra quiet as he walks into his and Luffy's room in case the younger man is sleeping. He's holding a tray that has a bowl of soup and a piece of toast on it.

The man walks to the edge of their king sized bed and peers down at his boyfriend who is still asleep, but not for long. Ace places the tray on the nightstand and leans down onto the bed.

He feels a little guilty because Luffy looks like he's having peaceful for the first time in days, but he places a gentle hand on his boyfriend's shoulder and ruses him out of his slumber.

Midnight blue open, looking dazed, and slowly he finds Ace, who is smiling up at him softly.

"Ace?" Luffy says, voice quiet and hoarse. Speaking alone seems to take a lot of effort and he looks like he'll fall back asleep at any moment. But he doesn't because his face contorts and he sneezes, the force so strong making him sit up. He sneezes a few more times before he starts to cough.

Ace grimaces and rubs circles in between Luffy's shoulder blades as violent coughs rack the younger man's body. When the coughing fit subsides, the nineteen year old leans against him and groans into his neck.

"You can go back to sleep soon Lu, but you gotta eat something, okay?"

Luffy shifts and looks up at him with with an expression that is close to his puppy dog eyes. "'M not hungry… Wanna sleep."

Ace brings up his hand and rubs his hand against the back of Luffy's clammy neck. He can feel Luffy shaking against him, telling him that he still has the chills. Ace carefully pushes Luffy back into the bed and tucks him in.

"Just a little, Luffy? For me?"

Luffy shook his head a little, but hissed. "Can't… Don't feel good."

"You're sick; this will make you feel better."

"No… Sleep. Eat it later…" Ace can already tell that Luffy is starting to fall asleep again and sighs.

"Okay, Lu. Go back to sleep, if you need me I'll be-"

Luffy weakly grabs onto Ace's wrist, meeting his eyes. "No. Stay with me…"

Ace gives in the moment those eyes met his. Not caring if the other is sick, he lays down on top of the blanket and puts a protective arm around Luffy, who snuggles in as close as he can.

Just before Luffy falls asleep, he slowly mumbles, "Ace makes me feel even better."

Ace cannot help the fond smile that unfurls on his lips and the last thing Luffy registers before he falls asleep is the feeling of familiar lips being pressed to his forehead.


	8. Something Good Can Work

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ace is possessive and Luffy has plans of his own.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally a new chapter.... Hinted LawLu, KidLaw, and Hancock x Luffy.
> 
> Ages: Ace - 20 / Luffy - 17

Ace forces himself to take a deep, deep breath through his nose. It doesn't have much of a effect in calming a completely, but it helps him not go over to the man talking to Luffy and punch him in the face.

His best friend lets out a loud peal of laughter, throwing his head back against the park bench he's sitting on in joy. Ace can feel the familiar warmth that pools in his stomach at the happy sound and expression, but he also feels jealousy.

What was the other man saying that was making Luffy laugh so hard.

Ace narrows his eyes and gets a better look at the man. He seems to be a little older than Ace. The dark circles under his eyes are visible from Ace's position behind a bench. His skin is pale and Ace thinks that he can see tattoos; it nothing like the warm tan on Luffy's skin. He has black hair and wears a black and white spotted hat.

He watches the two for another few minutes before a tall, red haired, and even paler man greets the two, much to Luffy's enthusiasm.

The one with dark circles around his eyes stands up and raises a hand, presumably saying goodbye to Luffy, who waves goodbye in that endearing enthusiastic way.

When the dark haired man grabs the red heads hand and gets a kiss, Ace can't help but be relived.

The two walk away, or at least they start to when the dark haired one turns around and says something to Luffy with a smirk.

Luffy turns his head right in Ace's direction and smiles wide. Ace curses lowly and ducks deeper into the bush.

As he got closer, Ace could the genuine smile on Luffy's face. He looks a little bit satisfied, but Ace isn't completly sure.

Luffy kneels in front of the bush and Ace knows he can see him, but he doesn't say anything.

"Na, Ace? I'm hungry, can we get food?"

Ace blinks and sighs, starting to climb out of the bush. Luffy giggles when Ace stands up and leans on his tiptoes, chest pressed against Ace's, pulling out leaves and twigs.

Ace's cheeks flush when he feels Luffy pressed against him and looks down, his eyes unable to look away from the little patch of skin that shows where Luffy's shirt rides up.

The twenty year old gulps and lets Luffy drag him away so they can get something to eat.

Ace frowns and freezes in place, not completely believing what he had seen from the corner of his eye.

He turns around, only to unfortunately be proven correct.

Luffy is sitting in a booth, shoveling food in his mouth, nothing unusual.

What is unusual, however, is the unfamiliar woman sitting very close to Luffy; from this angle it looks as if she's almost on his lap. Her face is covered by a pair of large sunglasses and a red scarf is wrapped around her head. There is a blush on her face.

Luffy looks completely unbothered by her, focusing on his food.

Once he's finished with his food he turns to the woman, their faces close. A little too close for Ace's liking.

The twenty year old feels rage and jealousy form in the pit of his stomach.

He can't really hear what he's saying until he gets a little closer.

"I told you Hammock, I'm not gonna marry you!"

Something inside of Ace snaps and he walks even closer.

"But Luffy, we're perfect for each other!" The woman - Hammock - who is clearly older than the seventeen year old she's trying to court.

"He _said_ he didn't want to marry you, so lay off."

Both Hammock and Luffy turn towards him. Luffy's face lights up automatically.

"Ace!"

"Hey Lu, is this weird lady bothering you?"

"Weird lady?! Excuse you! I have every right to talk to my future husband!"

"Future husband?! He clearly doesn't want to marry you!"

The woman scoffs. "Of course he wants to marry me! We're dating!"

Ace's eyes widen in shock, but he doesn't believe it. If Luffy had started dating this woman he would have told Ace, not being able to keep secrets.

"Eh? I'm not dating you? Shishishi, you're really silly Hancock!"

The woman's face turns beat red and she burries her face in her hands, leaning heavily on the table, and nearly yelling, "He called me my name!"

Ace raises an eyebrow at the odd woman but quickly turns to Luffy and puts a finger to his lips and gestures Luffy to get out of the booth.

Luffy follows his instructions quietly and the two sneak almost completly out of the diner before Luffy calls out: "See you later Hammock! Thanks for the food!"

"What?" A gasp quickly follows. "YOU! Bring back my Luffy this instant!"

"HE'S NOT YOURS!" Ace yells at her, his cheeks turning a bit red in anger. He reaches for Luffy's hand and starts running, so the woman won't catch up.

Usually, he wouldn't run away, but this time was a special occasion. Plus, if he saw that woman fawning over his Luffy one more time, he could not guarantee that she wouldn't have been punched and Ace really didn't want to hit a woman.

Ace freezes mid-step, causing Luffy to crash into his back with a little 'oof!'

They've run a pretty far way from the diner, now in the park. Luckily, the woman was no where in sight.

Had he really just addressed Luffy as his?

Well, there was no doubt in Ace's mind that Luffy was his best friend or his sometimes rival... And also his crush.

Ace's cheeks flush involuntarily, but Luffy doesn't seem to notice.

"Ne, Ace? Why did we run away?"

"Eh? Oh, um... Well I kind of just thought that you... wanted to get away from her?...Also I didn't really like... seeing her fawn over you... like that."

"You didn't? Oh, okay! Don't worry though, Hammock's only my friend!" Luffy swings their still connected hands back and forth.

"Well, she clearly has feelings for you, Lu."

He looks thoughtful for a moment.

"I don't like Hammock that way. I only like Ace that way!"

Ace's eyes widen and his heart stops beating.

"Wh-what are you saying?!"

Luffy smiles at him softly. "I like you a lot Ace! I have for a looooong time!"

Before Ace knows it, Luffy is leaning in and pressing his lips against Ace's.

Ace's eyes are wide with shock until he closes them and kisses Luffy back.

Ever since Luffy had last kissed him a year ago, Ace had had the lips kissing his on his mind nearly everyday. After the kiss, neither male had mentioned it. Ace had almost believed it was a dream, until now.

This was too real for it to be a mere dream.

Ace places a gentle hand on Luffy's cheek as their lips move together.

It perfect and Ace never wants it to stop, but it has to.

Luffy pulls away for breath and Ace leans their foreheads against wash other, shyly looking into Luffy's eyes. His cheeks are without a doubt red, while Luffy's have an adorable pink tint to them.

"I like you a whole lot, too."

Luffy's hand tightens around his as he smiles in joy.

"So..." Ace starts, removing his forehead from Luffy's. "You wanna go out sometime... As y'know, boyfriends?"

The expression on Luffy's face is enough of an answer, but the seventeen year old clinging onto Ace like a koala bear and saying "Yes, yes, yes!" confirmed it.


	9. Thunder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stormy days lead to comfort.

Ace is at work when a loud crash of thunder cuts him off.

The lights had flickered for a second and the only thing one could hear in the sudden silence was the heavy pounding of raindrops before his coworkers continued doing what they had been doing before. Ace, however doesn't return to his conversation, staring of into space.

"Ace?" His boss, Edward Newgate otherwise know as Whitebeard, says. He successfully catches Ace's attention. "What's wrong, son?"

The twenty-two year olds ears flush and he sheepishly scratches the back of his head. "Sorry, nothings really wrong, the thing is though is that it's thundering."

"Is ol'Ace-y afraid of thunder?" Thatch cuts in, throwing an arm over Ace's shoulder and leaning on him heavily.

"NO!" Ace nearly yells, pushing the older man off of his shoulders. "No. My boyfriend is terrified of thunder."

"Oh, the infamous boyfriend, you say?" Thatch leers, looking more interested than he should be.

Ace rolls his eyes. "Yeah, he's never liked thunder much, ever since we were kids it always freaked him out. He had the day off today, so he's probably still home alone..."

Whitebeard hums to himself, seeing the worried expression on Ace's face and the sudden coaxing expression on Thatch's.

"You can have the rest of day off, Ace. Take a long weekend." Whitebeard says, after a moment.

"Eh? Really?! There's still half a day left!"

Whitebeard waves his hand. "It's a slow day. Plus, you worked overtime last week."

Thatch throws an arm around Ace's shoulder once again. "C'mon, Acey! You work too much, take a little break! You said the thunder scares your boyfriend right? Go be with the kid! Me and Marco were about to go out to lunch; we can take you to your apartment!"

Ace narrows his eyes. "Whose driving?"

Thatch rolls his eyes in exaggeration. "I am, you know Marco is almost as hopeless as you are in the rain."

"YOU SHUT UP!"

Whitebeard laughs in mirth as he watches the two bicker playfully.

* * *

"This is it." Ace says as the red beaten down car approaches his apartment complex.

"Nice place." Marco says, looking up at the large building.

"Yep. Thanks for taking me home guys, I'll see you later." Ace replies once the car comes to a stop across the street from the complex, unbuckling his seat belt.

"You gotta introduce us to this boyfriend soon, okay Acey?" Thatch pouts childishly.

Ace laughs and opens the door. "Yeah, I'll introduce you guys soon. See ya!" He hops out of the car and enters the rain.

As the old car drives away, Ace runs to his apartment to avoid the rain as much as possible.

Soon enough, he's at the door of his penthouse apartment that Garp had recently insisted they rent. (The old man was even helping them pay it, even if both Ace and Luffy made some money. Something they never really expected from the old man.) Another loud crash of thunder hits when Ace turns the doorknob. If his ears didn't deceive him, a small squeak reaches his ears.

He shrugs his jacket off, going straight into the front room, where low and behold, a figure is rolled up into a little ball on the couch, covered up by a blanket. Sure enough, it's shaking slightly.

"Lu?" Ace says approaching the couch.

Luffy jumps and quickly tries to pull the blanket off. Ace assists and when the blanket is off, another crash of thunder strikes and Luffy jumps up, causing Luffy to yelp and jump up, clinging to Ace.

"Shhh, Lu, c'mon, calm down. It'll all be okay. I'm right here." Ace scoops Luffy up bridal style and begins to walk to their room. Luffy burries his nose into Ace's shoulders, his arms wrapped tight around his neck.

Gently, Ace places Luffy on their bed and presses a soft kiss to his lips.

When Ace pulls away and opens his eyes, Luffy's eyes are shining with relief and trust.

"You're wet." Luffy says smiling, reaching over for Ace's hand.

The newly twenty three year old lays down beside Luffy, squeezing the hand in his.

"Got more important things to care about right now." With his free hand Ace cups Luffy's cheek.

When he leans in to connect their lips once more, another wave of loud thunder passes, causing Luffy's breath to hitch in his throat and the grip on Ace's hand to tighten.

"Shhh Lu, c'mon." He presses a quick kiss to Luffy's lips. "Just focus on me, okay?"

Since they were kids, Ace had been one of the few people able to calm Luffy down during a thunder storm. However, as the years passed, the methods of helping changed.

As children and teens, hugging Luffy and talking to him had been successful. But when they started dating, kisses were quickly added into the fray.

"I'm never gonna let the stupid thunder get you, got that Lu?"

Luffy nods his head quickly connecting their lips once more.

Nothing was or would ever as great as Ace, Luffy was sure of it. The younger male scoots closer to Ace so their bodies were pressed against each other.

Ace's lips leave his, but quickly move to his jaw. Luffy sighs and extends his neck to give his boyfriend more access.

Soft, tiny moans leave Luffy's lips as Ace sucks and kisses his neck.

Soon, Ace shifts his weight to his legs and hovers over Luffy. The slightly flushed male underneath him blinks and looks confused. "Ace?" The freckled man was now sporting a mischievous grin.

Before Luffy knows it, Ace's hands are at his sides, tickling him furiously. The nineteen year old squeals in laughter and tries to stop the hands tickling him by rolling up into a ball.

"Nooo! Ace!" Luffy says in between laughs, his attempts at wriggling away unsuccessful. Ace laughs along with his boyfriend, his hands unrelenting.

The only thing that can stop Ace tickling Luffy is the monstrous growls that come from both of their stomachs at nearly the same time.

Both men look at each other for a second before breaking out into more laughter.

Quickly, Ace stands up and decides to scoop Luffy back into his arms bridal style.

"Lets find something to eat, Lu." Ace says, feeling Luffy's arms settle around his neck, a lot less tense than they had been.

Luffy nods, his cheeks still flushed from laughing.

"Hey Lu, did you notice?" Ace says walking out of their room.

"What?"

"No thunder anymore."

The way Luffy's face lights up leaves a warm feeling in Ace's stomach.

"Yay!" Luffy calls out, hugging Ace's neck tightly.

Ace laughs and grins as Luffy's grip refuses to lessen; he had always been rather clingy after all.

"You're such a dork."

He carries Luffy to the kitchen, already enjoying his long weekend

 


End file.
